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Ask HN: What are your hobbies, and why are they cool?

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Re: Ask HN: What are your hobbies, and why are they cool?

#121

Post by thaumaturgy »

bdat wrote: post #79
jasonkester wrote: post #3

Rock Climbing, specifically Bouldering, makes a great hobby for a computer programmer: 1. It works the right muscles to fight all the terrible things that programming does to your body. Slouching fixed, wrist issues fixed, obesity fixed. 2. It's crazy fun and addictive. You will make time to go climbing. There is no concept of "I should probably go climbing but..." like there is with the gym, running, etc. If it's ph…

Hello fellow boulderer! I have seen (anecdotally) that climbing has adverse effects on slouching. Your back muscles grow disproportionately to your chest muscles producing rounded, hunched shoulders.

Some boulderers do develop that physique, but they're typically climbing at much higher levels (V5 and up, Bishop V5 not your local gym V5) and tend to be less well built otherwise.

It's not a problem for most people. Most people get a lot of benefit for their posture from climbing.

Re: Ask HN: What are your hobbies, and why are they cool?

#122

Post by tzs »

Currently, chess and ham radio. They are both low cost (or can be...you can go crazy in either), have plenty to do both solo and with other people, and can be enjoyed as a beginner yet have plenty of depth to occupy you for a lifetime.

Ham radio can be combined with other activities. There is a thing called SOTA (Summit On The Air), for instance, that combines hiking and mountain climbing with radio. You earn points by reaching peaks listed in their database and setting up a portable radio and making contact.

There are quite a few ham radio hobbyists on HN. Many checked in on this discussion: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=9445123

Any who were left out, reply and check in here.

Re: Ask HN: What are your hobbies, and why are they cool?

#125

Post by gadders »

MrGando wrote: post #112
gadders wrote: post #97

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You can also keep the odd fish, and cook what you caught yourself. That's pretty cool too.

Usually it's not a part of it, but you could do it. A huge part of the fly fishing philosophy is Catch & Release (C&R).

I think it depends where you fish.

Wild fish, certainly you should limit how many fish you take. In stocked waters, it doesn't matter so much. In fact on the ticket they stipulate how many fish you should take with you.

Re: Ask HN: What are your hobbies, and why are they cool?

#126

Post by rock8y »

elorant wrote: post #99
rock8y wrote: post #66

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Elorant, Is there an inexpensive way to be a masseur you are aware of ? Every school seems to be expensive where I live at.

I live in Greece so I doubt my experience would be of any use to you. For the record though I attended lessons at a private institution. And by the way you can check YouTube [1], there are thousands of good instructional videos about massage, from Thai to Swedish. [1] Here's one example of a good massage channel I've found: https://www.youtube.com/user/psychetruth

Thanks for the link though, Will start experimenting on my SO. :D

Re: Ask HN: What are your hobbies, and why are they cool?

#127

Post by Derpdiherp »

IkmoIkmo wrote: post #98
Derpdiherp wrote: post #18

Motorcycles - There's no feeling like it, you get time to unwind and be in your own head if you need it, or you can push the envelope and empty your head of everything but the road. The maintenance / mechanics side is really rewarding as well.

It's one of the few reasons I regret living in a very urban area in Europe (Amsterdam), there's very little space. I'm completely fine with that in terms of a home, I don't need a massive kitchen and massive bedrooms etc. But I really wish I had a garden and a garage. If I had either of those I'd love to get into motorcycles. Without them, it just feels like my expensive toy is out there on the street and if anything…

I live in the UK and I don't have a garage either, I'm fortunate enough to live on a quiet enough street off of main roads though, so I do all my maintenance on the street. It's ok until the wind gets up, and genuinely pleasant in summer.

So far as being vulnerable - yes you are. This is something you have to come to terms with, there are many biker safety courses out there designed to make you a better rider, police riding courses are very good, and so are some advanced ones - they'll teach you how to ride defensively, how to read the road as best as possible, danger assessment etc. That said, there is always a chance something out of your control could happen to you, but the same could be said for walking out of your house every day, we do what we enjoy because we enjoy it - you must assess the risk vs reward and decide if it is for you.

My advice? If you honestly have an interest, try a beginners course, even if you don't initially intend on getting a motorcycle it will give you a little taste of what it is like and let you make a slightly more informed decision.

Re: Ask HN: What are your hobbies, and why are they cool?

#128

Post by jrmiii »

acallan wrote: post #50

Cycling. I'm in a club and ride with a group of 20+ people, 4-5 times a week. Most weeks I get at least 150 miles in. I like it for a variety of reasons: it's fun to go fast; it's individual yet also a group activity; there's lots to learn; the mechanical and design aspects of modern cycling are really cool; and it makes me feel great. As a nerd, I love analyzing my rides. I collect data on the power I deliver to the…

How do you collect the data?
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